


Midday

by TentacleBubbles



Series: The life cycle of a day [2]
Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Action, Alternate Universe - Magic, Alternate Universe - Urban Fantasy, Depictions of injury, Fire Hazards, Fire Motifs, Happy Ending, M/M, Multi, NO character deaths, Polyamory, Road Trip, car crash, creature AU, minor original characters, or lack thereof, slight suspense elements
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-26
Updated: 2020-06-30
Packaged: 2021-03-04 01:02:52
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 8,782
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24925105
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TentacleBubbles/pseuds/TentacleBubbles
Summary: Matsukawa was a sun god, but now he doesn’t know who he is. Oikawa is immortal, or at least he thought he was. Iwaizumi knew he was human; how can he be anything else? Hanamaki is a witch, or as he liked to call it, a Magical Boy.The story begins and continues and happens, in flashes of the midday sun.ORTime to go on that modern urban fantasy road trip in a country that’s not anywhere, but it is somewhere. Oh, and fulfill a prophecy along the way.Can be read by itself!!
Relationships: Hanamaki Takahiro/Iwaizumi Hajime, Hanamaki Takahiro/Iwaizumi Hajime/Matsukawa Issei/Oikawa Tooru, Hanamaki Takahiro/Matsukawa Issei, Hanamaki Takahiro/Oikawa Tooru, Iwaizumi Hajime/Matsukawa Issei, Iwaizumi Hajime/Oikawa Tooru, Matsukawa Issei/Oikawa Tooru
Series: The life cycle of a day [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1803769
Comments: 17
Kudos: 91
Collections: HQ Mini Bang





	1. Flicker - The start, soft and hesitant

**Author's Note:**

> Hello! This is my Haikyuu mini bang fic! I was paired with the wonderful artist [Cruria](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Cruria/works)!! I will link the art in the second chapter but you can also find it on her ao3 which I just linked!
> 
> This fic has also been beta-ed by [Kori](https://twitter.com/uttertrashdump) and many thanks to both of them!! Hope you enjoy!

Issei woke up like he always did, right at the start of dawn. For the first time in a long time he tossed and turned, stubbornly clinging to sleep that was quickly dissipating.

With a sigh, the sun god gave up the fight and sat up. He dragged himself up, slow and languid. It was too early, but that’s how it’s always been. After another moment, he fell back down into bed, staring resolutely at the ceiling as if that’d allow him to escape back to sleep.

An hour later and it was still too early, which was why he’s surprised to receive a series of texts from Oikawa and Hanamaki, both asking him where he’d been.

Right after was a call from Iwaizumi. He stared at his phone, perplexed. He answered it with a bewildered, “Hello?”

“You’re missing breakfast,” Iwaizumi said, skipping any illusion of pleasantries. “Oikawa’s been complaining about ‘not having your bread for his jam.’”

There were some snickering in the background- joined by Issei, naturally. Iwaizumi’s sigh crackled through the line.

“I’m sorry,” Issei amended. “I thought we won’t meet up for the trip until midday?”

“That doesn’t excuse you from breakfast,” Iwaizumi scolded — or teased? Issei wasn’t sure. He was about to reply when there were some sounds on the other end of the line, and Oikawa’s voice filled up the room.

“Get your butt over here, Mattsun!” he demanded, “I brought my special jam all the way here and you didn’t show up!”

“Yes, yes, of course, your highness,” Issei chuckled. He made another attempt at getting up, this time more successful with Oikawa’s chatter in his ear.

“And don’t forget to bring more bread for the trip!” Oikawa reminded him. “Now hurry! Or do you want Makki to come fetch you?”

“Anything you want, Sunshine!” he could hear Hanamaki say, and it  _ did _ sound tempting.

“No, no need,” Issei assured them, “I’m on my way. Don’t harass Iwaizumi too much without me.”

“No promises,” Oikawa sing-songed, and the line cut off just as Iwaizumi’s voice rose in complaint.

Issei went through the motions- familiar, comforting but slightly different. His mind kept flitting back to the phone conversation, to Oikawa and Iwaizumi and even Hanamaki’s voices, making his steps a little lighter and his smile a little brighter.

It was no time at all before he’d reached Iwaizumi’s grocery store. Maybe Iwaizumi really  _ was _ magic, with the way his store welcomed him like a home he’d long forgotten.

\---

Matsukawa Issei was, for all intents and purposes, retired. He’d long let go of his job, had gotten used to seeing someone – something else raise his old throne every morning. He had made peace with it, with the loss of his old name. Helios no longer lived, but  _ he _ did.

He lived in this sleepy little town, with its slew of interesting inhabitants just trying to live out their lives in peace just like him. For the years that he had stayed here, he made friends with the local grocer, Iwaizumi, and the witty botanist, Hanamaki.

The two made the town so much more comforting than any other place Issei had found himself in. Made every day that much more interesting, made the mundane acts of eating and talking feel as precious as hoarded treasures.

And then there was Oikawa, who came into their lives and filled a spot as if he’d always meant to be there. Bright and full of life, the novelist was always full of ambitious stories, visions of science that bordered on magic and vice versa. A bard with his words as his weapon.

Issei was content, with a life like this. He felt, for the first time in the longest time, something approaching happiness.

So of course, the Fates had to butt in.

\---

“Do we have everything?”

“Yes, Mattsun,” Oikawa said, a hint exasperated, “we’ve checked three times.”

“It’s true, see?” Hanamaki held up a piece of paper, showing a detailed checklist marked in red and blue and purple. 

“There’s nothing to worry about, we’re not forgetting anything,” Iwaizumi assured him, closing the back door of the van they were using.

It was, originally, what Iwaizumi used to transport goods for his grocery store. For this week it was all up to Ennoshita to watch the store while they’re gone.

They were getting ready to begin the trip, their route planned out so that they would arrive in Oikawa’s city right on the day of Issei’s birthday, and that they could get back home all within exactly a week.

Issei was a bit surprised that they’d still remembered after a month without it being mentioned, even if he had dared to hope they wouldn’t.

“You doing okay, Sunshine?” Hanamaki asked, nudging Issei with his shoulder lightly, “we don’t have to go if you don’t want to. This is for your birthday, after all.”

“No, I- yes, I’m okay,” Issei shook his head, nudging him back with a grin, “can’t wait to see how long Iwa-chan and Oikawa will last in a van together, you know?”

The two of them snickered in tandem, and Issei was reminded that he had long made up his mind.

He’d agreed to this for them and for himself. Human lives were so short, burnt up so quickly. He wanted to cherish all the time he had with them while he still can, even if it meant risking the safe little haven he’d found. Maybe when they get back, he can tell them why he was so reluctant to go, why he went anyway.

“I’ll have you know,” Oikawa piped in haughtily, “that I’ve always been and will always be on my  _ best _ behaviour.”

There was only a second of silence, Issei and Hanamaki catching each other’s looks. And then they were laughing. Oikawa whined, trying to pull Iwaizumi to defend him. Iwaizumi was having none of it.

“Come on, we might as well start heading out,” Iwaizumi said with a shake of his head. His face was stern, but his eyes twinkled with obvious delight.

He shone golden under the sunlight.

\---

Three hours into the trip, Oikawa and Iwaizumi were fighting over music choices while Hanamaki ate gummy bears with Issei in the backseat.

Issei leaned back, gesturing with a gummy bear. Hanamaki smirked, leaned away from the other boy and opened his mouth. Issei, with an answering smirk, tossed the gummy bear in the air, missing Hanamaki’s mouth and hitting him in the eye instead. It bounced down his shirt.

Hanamaki made a surprised noise, collapsing into giggles as he picked up the gummy bear and threw it back at Issei. It hit the window, bouncing wildly and landing on Oikawa’s hair, sticky enough to stay. He was too busy arguing with Iwaizumi to notice.

Issei and Hanamaki shook with held back laughter, nudging each other.

“I dare you to eat that,” Hanamaki whispered, eyes alight.

“No way!” Issei pretended to gag silently, fighting off a grin.

It was so  _ childish _ , so innocently youthful.

“We can hear you, you know,” Iwaizumi called over his shoulder, interrupting Oikawa’s speech about Marina and the Diamonds.

Oikawa looked over at them, and Issei couldn’t stop the snicker escaping his lips. The gummy bear swayed but stayed stuck in Oikawa’s hair. Hanamaki curled in on himself, trying to contain his laughter. Even Iwaizumi huffed in a way that meant he was holding back a laugh, something Issei found incredibly cute.

Oikawa finally caught on, running a hand through his hair and shouting in outrage when he found the gummy bear.

“How dare you!” He threw the bear at Hanamaki. This time, he successfully caught it with his mouth.

“Ew!” Oikawa recoiled in mild horror. “That’s disgusting!”

Hanamaki just smirked, chewing leisurely.

Issei felt a small part of him begin to settle. Maybe this trip will turn out all right.

\---

\---

They spent half the night with Takahiro driving, until they arrived at a sketchy motel and could book a room. They all ended up huddled together, all four of them in a bed meant for two. They had agreed it would be cheaper, especially with the motel’s subpar heating.

Takahiro liked to think it was because they were all secretly in agreement; cuddling with each other is infinitely better than lying in separate rooms in a slightly suspicious motel with murder-y vibes.

As if to prove his point, Oikawa snuggled further into his embrace, already fast asleep. He was in the middle with Takahiro, flanked by Iwaizumi with Matsukawa on the other side. This way, they were all sufficiently warm.

As he succumbed to slumber himself, the witch almost found himself wishing that morning would be delayed just a bit longer.

\---

Morning came as it always did, however, bright and early. Matsukawa was the first to wake up, quickly followed by Takahiro once he felt one of his heat sources disappear. Soon after, Oikawa woke up, whining about breakfast. Iwaizumi was in turn woken up by Oikawa moving about on the bed.

“Dibs on the bathroom!” Takahiro announced, as soon as Matsukawa opened the bathroom door.

“Hey!” Oikawa complained, but Takahiro was already closing the door behind him.

He could hear Oikawa complaining more, answered by a grumpy, no-doubt rumpled Iwaizumi. He hummed to himself, smiling, as he listened to them debate the merits of trying out the motel’s complimentary breakfast.

“ — and in my long years of living, I’ve learned one thing,” Oikawa said, dramatically and with plenty of gesturing, pausing just when Takahiro exited the bathroom.

“Bathroom’s free,” Takahiro said into the resulting silence.

“My turn!” Oikawa announced, grabbing his things. He pointed at Takahiro as he rushed past him. “My point was that we don’t waste free food. Defend me in my absence!”

Takahiro saluted, mildly amused. “Yes, your Highness!”

Oikawa paused at the nickname, by now both familiar and suspicious. He’d only been joking when calling Oikawa royalty, but Takahiro wasn’t going to complain about the little clue to the guy’s past identities. He’d always been curious.

The immortal shrugged his nickname off, disappearing into the bathroom.

Dutifully, Takahiro continued the debate with Matsukawa and Iwaizumi. Unfortunately, even through Iwaizumi’s turn in the bathroom, Matsukawa held strong.

“You’ve seen their lobby,” Matsukawa pointed out. “Do you really want to guess at what their kitchen looks like?”

“Well —” Takahiro paused. Sure, his companions may all be more or less immortals. He may have magic that was beyond a normal human’s comprehension. But he didn’t have a death wish.

They ended up skipping the breakfast and relying on their stored snacks instead.

Or at least, that was the plan.

They had all made their way back to the van, idly chatting. Takahiro was half-heartedly defending the complimentary cupcake Oikawa managed to snag from the nice lady at the front desk, despite being dry and the icing having a weird, nearly solid consistency. Oikawa kept making a face every time he bit into it, but was stubbornly trying to prove his own point.

“Why aren’t  _ you _ eating it then?” Iwaizumi challenged, a corner of his lips turned up in amusement.

“Wouldn’t want to steal from his Highness, of course,” Takahiro answered smoothly, grinning in return.

“Shut up!” Oikawa interrupted, looking miffed. This only succeeded in Matsukawa and Iwaizumi laughing.

“No seriously,” Oikawa lowered his questionable cupcake. “Don’t you guys hear that?”

Silence descended over the group, Takahiro resisting the urge to look around. There wasn’t anyone else in the parking lot, and the van was practically right in front of them. It almost felt like there was nobody around for miles.

Takahiro was almost sure Oikawa was messing with them when —

There.

A soft scuffling sound. One that seemed to have come from inside their van. He couldn’t be sure, but it almost looked like there was movement when he peeked through the windows.

“I’m not the only one hearing that, right?” Takahiro asked, just to be sure.

“I heard it,” Iwaizumi confirmed. Matsukawa nodded.

“You don’t have  _ rats _ in your van, right?” Oikawa asked, yelping when Iwaizumi shoved him lightly. “What? Just asking!”

Iwaizumi rolled his eyes. “No, I don’t have rats in my van. You think I’d let rats anywhere near my produce?”

“Then what the hell’s in there?” Takahiro piped up, not taking his eyes off of the van. Now that he knew what to listen for, he could really hear something moving inside every now and then.

“Well  _ I’m _ not checking it out,” Oikawa said, making a face. He shoved at Iwaizumi. “You do it! It’s your van.”

“Hey!” Iwaizumi protested. “You guys probably left some chips open and a raccoon slipped inside!”

Takahiro looked between them, actually considering the problem.

If it was something dangerous, magic might get involved. He didn’t want them to have to reveal themselves under duress, since it seemed like they wanted to keep their identities a secret still.

“I’ll do it,” Takahiro decided. “Everyone stand back.”

He inched forward, hand outstretched. He gripped the door handle, glancing behind him and adjusting his stance. This way, even if he did end up using magic, it wouldn’t be so noticeable.

Oikawa made a sound like a seal in distress.

Takahiro’s hands felt sweaty. He tugged on the door and —

_ Click _ .

The door stayed firmly shut. He tugged again, even as it dawned on him that it was a stupid idea. The scuffling inside had stopped.

_ Click. _

“Iwaizumi,” Oikawa mock-whispered. “I think the van is still locked.”

“Oh,” Iwaizumi replied.

From behind him, Takahiro heard the jingle of keys and the soft  _ beep beep  _ of the van unlocking.

“…we good?” he asked, just to be sure.

“Yep,” Iwaizumi replied.

“Okay,” Takahiro said, his voice low. He pulled the door open.

Strewn about the van were the wrappers they’d left, some travel pillows, and a jacket one of them owned. It was probably Oikawa’s based on the loud, space themed pattern on its back. It was also being chewed on by a fluffy white cat that Takahiro was extremely familiar with. He sagged in relief.

“False alarm,” Takahiro said, scooping up the cat by the armpits and presenting her to his baffled friends. “Look who decided to hitch a ride!”

There was a moment of silence, as it dawned on all four of them what they were just doing.

Matsukawa was the first to laugh, deep chuckles barely held back that warmed Takahiro all over.

\---

_ “So, any new fun facts for me today?” Takahiro had asked, purely out of habit. _

_ Kuroo smirked as he boxed Takahiro’s latest order of pastries. Sweet cream puffs in three flavors; chocolate, vanilla and coffee. _

_ “Just the usual,” the baker said. “Did you know Hippopotamus are omnivorous? So is  _ **_the thing that lurks in the ruins._ ** _ ” _

_ Takahiro blinked, exchanging a baffled look with the baker. But then Kuroo frowned, opened his mouth again. His eyes had glazed over, glowed a soft golden that focused on Takahiro. _

_ “ _ **_Break its seal, ignite the fire,_ **

**_With bonds reformed in moments dire._ **

**_Truths revealed by helping hands,_ **

**_Give what must be given at fate’s demands.”_ **

_ He cocked his head thoughtfully. _

**_“Be careful of the company you keep, little witch boy.”_ **

_ Kuroo’s voice faltered, the heavy layer of magic in it dissipating. He coughed a little, covering his mouth. Then he gave Takahiro a wry smile, handing him his box of pastries with one hand. _

_ “Don’t you hate it when that happens?” _

\---

\---

It was Tooru’s turn to drive.

Beside him, Matsukawa was trying to nap, eyes half-lidded and staring at nothing. He’d always been the groggiest in the morning, despite the first to wake up. Tooru worried about him sometimes, but hadn’t found a way to help without seeming intrusive.

In the backseat, Hanamaki and Iwaizumi were discussing plants and gardening, voices low so they wouldn’t disturb Matsukawa too much. Puffers, curled up in her owner’s lap, was purring softly in the background. They’d already finished eating breakfast earlier, a box of sweets Hanamaki had stashed.

Tooru licked his lips at the recent memory. He had no idea how Hanamaki kept them as fresh as they were, but he definitely enjoyed the croissant far more than the cupcake he had pilfered from that motel. Not that he was going to ever admit that and concede defeat..

Matsukawa had chosen soft, mellow music by some indie artist that Tooru hadn’t heard before. He sang of friendships and lemons, boys and bugs. It was calming and ethereal, in its own way.

Much like Matsukawa.

All in all, the drive had been peaceful, and the sun climbed up higher in the sky with relative gentleness. It was a little past noon when something happened.

They were driving along smoothly, forest on one side and an empty field on the other. There were mountains in the distance, getting further away behind them.

The music played along merrily, a different artist singing about suns and surprises.

Then it cut off abruptly.

A few seconds passed where all four of them paused, waiting for the music to come back. Surely it’s just a hiccup in the recording? Some sort of delay on the Bluetooth?

Still the music didn’t come back, and Matsukawa sat up to fiddle with his phone. Tooru kept his attention on the road, but glanced beside him to see Matsukawa frowning.

“What’s up?” Tooru asked, slowing the car down.

“Phone’s dead,” Matsukawa said.

“Same here,” Hanamaki piped up from the backseat.

“That’s not right,” Iwaizumi muttered. “This was nearly fully charged just an hour ago.”

“Can you guys check mine?” Tooru said. “Should I stop the car for a moment?”

“No, keep going,” Hanamaki said hurriedly. “We don’t want to get stuck here in the middle of nowhere.”

“Okay,” Tooru said, unsure. Something was definitely wrong.

“Nope, no life here,” Matsukawa sighed. Tooru chanced another glance at him, and saw that he was holding his and Tooru’s phones as well as Hanamaki’s tablet. All three screens were blank.

“Maybe we’re just passing by a dead zone,” Hanamaki suggested. “Some weirdo living out in the woods having some sort of device fryer or something.”

“That’s not exactly reassuring,” Iwaizumi pointed out.

“We just need to get out of here then,” Tooru decided, changing gears and speeding up the car.

For a couple of minutes, everyone was quiet. Even Puffers had stopped purring, staring out the window with her tail flicking steadily. Tooru gripped the steering wheel almost as hard as he was gritting his teeth, bothered by the silence.

Then, they came to a crossroad that Tooru didn’t remember from their planned route. He had it memorized, and even if he didn’t, it was saved on all of their phones. But the phones were all dead.

“Please tell me one of you remember which road to take,” Tooru said as they neared the crossroads.

“Shit, dude,” Hanamaki said flatly.

“I say go right,” Matsukawa said.

“Should we really be guessing at this?” Tooru asked. He looked between the two roads, but they looked just the same, both leading towards more expanses of trees and fields.

“Go right,” Iwaizumi suggested. “It looks more used.”

Tooru didn’t really agree with that, but it wasn’t like he could refute it. They had no way to check without going anyway. He hoped they wouldn’t get lost.

\---

They’ve gotten lost.

None of them spoke as the car kept going, but they can all see the obvious. The road kept going, eventually winding deeper and deeper into the forest. There was no way they were still heading in the right direction.

“I’m starting to have a really bad feeling about this,” Hanamaki said. “We should turn back.”

Tooru tapped a finger on the steering wheel — a nervous habit.

“I think so, too,” he said.

Matsukawa and Iwaizumi kept quiet. When Tooru glanced beside him, he could see Matsukawa was visibly tense, looking out at the forest around them.

Tooru began to turn the car around, maneuvering carefully in the dirt road. He had barely slowed the car down when he felt it: A wave of energy like the wind howling, coming from the left side of the car.

He only had a split second to recognise the familiar taste of magic before something barrelled against the car, sending it flying and crashing into a tree.


	2. Flare - A burst of entropy, pushed forward

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You can find the art [here](https://archiveofourown.org/works/24918163)! Thank you again!!

Tooru had no idea when he blacked out, but once he was awake, he was distinctly aware of the ache in his body, and the electric zing of it stitching itself back together. He struggled to get up on seemingly broken legs, focusing his healing there as he crawled from under the wreckage.

The van had crumpled on one side, upside down and practically leaning against a tree. Tooru felt more than saw Iwaizumi approach him and help him stumble to his feet. Tooru blinked his eyes, vision tinted red. Did he hit his head?

“Are you all right?” Iwaizumi asked, despite having cuts all over himself.

“What the fuck,” Tooru said.

“Yeah,” Iwaizumi agreed, brushing a hand against Tooru’s face. His touch was gentle, but his hand came away with blood.

“Mattsun?” Tooru asked, turning around and fighting off the nausea it brought. He had to slow down his healing — had to hide it from the others. “Makki?”

“Here!” Hanamaki was leaning against a tree, scraped up and dirty like them. He had a nasty looking gash on his arm, and his cat was shivering in his lap, crying plaintively. Despite all that, he was grinning.

“Guess we can’t let  _ you _ drive for the rest of the trip,” he said.

“Don’t you even start,” Tooru warned, rushing over to him anyway. Iwaizumi was inspecting the wreckage.

“I’m really all right,” Hanamaki said, petting his cat to calm her. “We need to find Mattsun and get out of here.”

A round of cursing came from the other side of the van. Tooru and Hanamaki exchanged a look, and Tooru reluctantly went to investigate.

It was Matsukawa, being pulled from under the van by Iwaizumi. Oikawa moved to help them, heart pounding at the sight. From the looks of it, Matsukawa’s legs would have been crushed. And unlike Tooru, he couldn’t grow it back.

But... 

“That hurt,” Matsukawa complained, once he was freed. He lied with his back on the ground, looking down at himself. “I forgot how much things can hurt.”

Tooru couldn’t answer, eyes wide. No matter how hard he looked, Matsukawa’s legs were intact. His pants were torn to shreds from the knee down, but there wasn’t a single scratch on him.

“What the fuck,” Tooru said again.

Matsukawa sighed, letting his head fall back on the dirt. “Yeah.”

“What’s up?” Hanamaki came to join them, cat curled over his shoulders, and Tooru finally managed to tear his gaze away from Matsukawa.

“Fucking — should you be walking around?” Tooru asked, fussing over him. Hanamaki waved his concerns aside, the asshole.

“I’m fine,” Hanamaki said, peering over at Matsukawa and Iwaizumi. “Why’s our Highness cursing so much?”

“Uh,” Iwaizumi said helpfully, blinking between the three of them. He looked equal parts confused and concerned.

“Mattsun was crushed under the van,” Tooru explained, finally, when it looked like none of them would. He gave Matsukawa a suspicious glare. “But he’s not injured at all.”

Matsukawa, to his credit, winced at the accusatory tone.

“Right, about that,” he said, sighing again. “I’m sort of… a little invulnerable? Came with an old gig.”

“A little?” Tooru asked, feeling a little hysterical. “An old  _ gig?” _

Matsukawa covered his face with his hands, next words muffled. “I used to be a god.”

“Knew you were heavenly, babe. Want to get up?” Hanamaki nodded understandingly. He stepped forward to offer Matsukawa a hand.

“Thanks,” Matsukawa said with a weak laugh, smiling and accepting his hand. He gave Tooru a helpless shrug. “I didn’t think it would come up.”

Hanamaki went over to Iwaizumi, who was still standing in a bit of a daze. “You all right?” he asked.

Iwaizumi looked at him, frown deepening.

“Okay, then.” Hanamaki carefully extracted the cat wrapped around his shoulders and plopped her gently in Iwaizumi’s arms. “Here you go.”

Iwaizumi looked down at Puffers, a little teary eyed.

“What’s happening?” he asked, voice small. Puffers meowed at him.

“Makki!” Tooru said, high pitched. “Why aren’t you freaking out? You should be freaking out!”

“I already knew,” Hanamaki said, stepping back to face them.

Tooru’s jaw dropped, at the same time Matsukawa squeaked out a “What.”

Hanamaki grinned, the  _ asshole _ .

“I didn’t think it would come up,” he said.

Tooru felt like his scream of frustration was more than appropriate given the circumstances.

\---

\---

Okay so Issei felt just a little bit bummed.

He hadn’t meant to spring the news on them like this, given that it was probably one of the worst ways to find out. But he had no control over his part-invulnerability, just like he had no idea where that surge of magic came from. It hadn’t disturbed the rest of the forest around them, only their van.

_ Iwaizumi’s  _ van, now totalled. It was harder to console him over it than over Issei’s apparent godhood.

They had no choice but to pack up and find an area with a signal, so that they could call for help and get the hell out of the woods. They followed the path back the way they came, but for some reason the forest felt different. Like it was hiding something.

Issei didn’t like it one bit.

Iwaizumi and Hanamaki were leading their little group, the latter talking in hushed tones. Iwaizumi was really shaken up, a lot quieter than he already was.

Oikawa, walking beside Issei with a hefty bag and a heftier pout, wasn’t speaking to him. Which was fair, he supposed.

Oikawa was a writer, after all. He probably thought he was more open to the possibility of the supernatural than other people and felt betrayed that he hadn’t shared this secret with him. Then again, he would rather believe in aliens than ghosts.

Issei took another glance at him, but Oikawa stubbornly refused to meet his gaze. Even so, he couldn’t help but notice the crude bandage on Oikawa’s head, stained with blood. They did their best to clean the cut he got, and Oikawa insisted it wasn’t as bad as it looked, but Issei didn’t think it reassured any of them.

Issei sighed. He opened his mouth, intending to say sorry again, when Oikawa made a sound at the same time.

“Okay, look,” Oikawa said, before Issei could try to speak again, “I’m not angry at you or anything. I’m just,” he looked away, “frustrated.”

“You have every right to be,” Issei said empathically. Heck, he was frustrated at himself.

“No!” Oikawa shook his head. “I mean, I feel like I should’ve noticed it sooner. How the hell did Makki even figure it out? Hey, hey Makki! How’d you figure it out?”

Hanamaki glanced back at them, eyebrows raised.

“It was pretty obvious,” he said with finality, going back to talking with Iwaizumi.

Oikawa looked thoroughly offended, and Issei felt a little bit of the same. He wasn’t sure how exactly Hanamaki figured it out, but he suspected that the magic that clung to him had something to do with it. Maybe he had his own secrets he didn’t want to share just yet.

“Well, I still think I should’ve figured it out sooner,” Oikawa insisted. “And I know we haven’t known each other for very long, but…”

Oikawa sighed, finally turning to look at him. His eyes were wide and pleading, something Issei had very quickly gotten weak to.

“Why didn’t you say anything?” he asked, uncharacteristically soft.

It was Issei’s turn to avert his gaze. How was he supposed to answer  _ that _ ?

“Mattsun,” Oikawa said, tugging on his shirt. “I need to tell you something —”

They bumped into Iwaizumi and Hanamaki, who had stopped walking. Issei looked up, startled, as Oikawa yelped in surprise. Puffers was struggling in Hanamaki’s grip, clawing her way up to his shoulders and hissing at something in front of them.

It was a huge, circular clearing, lined with black boulders each about a foot high, with what looked to be a huge black stone formation in the middle. The stones had words carved into them in a language Issei didn’t know.

He stepped forward to investigate the closest one, frowning.

He didn’t think there were a lot of languages he still hadn’t learned. He didn’t even recognize the alphabet being used, meaning it was either extremely new or extremely old. On first glance, it looked to be painted in faded black blood. But as he looked, he realized it was as if the words were burned into the stones.

“Better step away from that.”

It was Iwaizumi who pulled Issei back, a firm hand on his shoulder. Issei looked around, and saw that Hanamaki was not so subtly trying to touch a stone with a wisp of magic. Puffers growled louder the closer they got.

“This day is just getting freakier and freakier,” Oikawa muttered, standing to Issei’s right and glaring at the stone formations.

Iwaizumi scoffed, sounding a lot more like himself. But his gaze was on the formations, too.

“Does this place feel familiar to you guys?” he asked.

Issei shook his head. It was odd, too, that he hadn’t seen this thing before in his very long life.

“Could have been in some article or in the news?” Oikawa suggested, squinting at the writings.

“Nah,” Hanamaki walked closer to them, inspection apparently finished. “I’ve never seen anything like this before. Don’t touch anything.”

“Oh.”

Issei stared at Oikawa’s hand, frozen in the middle of brushing dust from one of the carved stones. He looked up at Oikawa’s face, and he was staring back with wide eyes.

Behind him, Issei heard someone sigh. He wasn’t sure if it was Iwaizumi or Hanamaki.

Oikawa straightened, retracting his hand. He muttered a sorry, cheeks flushed in embarrassment. Issei bit back a smile, knowing that fond amusement was probably not the best response at the moment, no matter how cute Oikawa managed to be.

“Shit, step back.”

Hanamaki pulled them all behind him, eyes never leaving the formation in the middle of the clearing. Issei had never seen him this serious before, and apparently neither did Iwaizumi and Oikawa, if their wide eyed stare was anything to go by. They all followed his words without a sound.

For a moment, nothing happened.

Then, a rumbling sound came from the huge rock formation, the earth shaking enough to displace the dust on the ring of stones around the perimeter.

The four of them watched with growing dread as the formation  _ moved, _ cracks crawling along its surface to reveal red hot magma underneath. The rock formation stood up, a monster twice their height with glowing, fiery ember eyes. The magma didn’t sludge and drip like it should have, instead seemed to be keeping the body of the rock monster together.

Beside him, Issei could hear Oikawa cursing again.

The rock monster cracked and shuddered, taking a single heavy step forward and away from the rest of the rock formation. Without it, the formation was more clearly defined, a slab of rectangular stone like a crudely carved door.

Issei frowned, wondering just where he could have gotten the impression of a door from. It was a big rectangular rock with carvings of an unknown language burnt into it.

Before he could figure it out, the rock monster took another deafening step, head turning smoothly on its magma neck to look in their direction.

“Oh no,” Hanamaki said, the magic around him swirling with his agitation.

The rock monster raised a rock arm, carving on the end of its ‘hand’ glowing brightly. Then it shot a fireball at them.

Issei knew, theoretically, that he could survive most forms of fire unharmed. Greek fire was a no go, of course, and magic fire tailored specifically to his kind. But whatever this was  _ shouldn’t _ have affected him much. Right?

He felt the heat of the fire as it hurled closer, faster than he could pull all of them out of its way. He’d only managed to grab onto Oikawa and Iwaizumi, the ones closest to him, when Hanamaki ran forward, arms outstretched.

Issei watched, his heart in his throat, as Hanamaki shouted a spell, magic coalescing and becoming a tangible wall in front of them. The fireball collided with the shield in a rocky explosion, bright and blinding.

Not that it kept Issei from looking at Hanamaki, magic flared protectively around him like the rays of a sun he’d long forgotten.

The blast only lasted for a few seconds, and the smoke cleared to show the monster in the same position it was before.

“Makki,” Oikawa was the first to speak. Issei noticed he’d been holding onto Hanamaki’s jacket with the hand not busy holding Issei’s tightly.

Hanamaki half turned, arms still outstretched and holding his magic shield in front of him. He had a rueful grin on his face.

“Surprise? Told you I was a Magical Boy,” he said.

Issei snorted, unable to help himself. That seemed to be the right decision anyway, Hanamaki’s shoulders visibly losing some of its tension.

“It’s moving again,” Iwaizumi warned.

They all turned to look at the rock monster, which had begun to raise its other arm.

“Shit, I don’t think my shield can hold up against two,” Hanamaki said.

“Scatter?” Issei suggested. “Use the trees as cover.”

“We can’t set the forest on fire!” Oikawa pointed out. “That’s highly irresponsible.”

“Oh yeah, and having a fire monster in the middle of the forest isn’t?” Iwaizumi countered.

“We don’t have time for this! Scatter!” Hanamaki shouted, followed by another spell.

Issei felt more than saw the shield materialize around him as he dove away, pulling Oikawa with him. Iwaizumi ran in another direction, equally as shielded. Hanamaki stood his ground, watching the rock monster with uncharacteristic stillness.

The rock monster paused, one arm half raised. It turned its head again, from one side to the other, doing an almost complete 180 degree turn. Then it’s torso moved, magma waist letting it pivot smoothly until it had one hand aimed at Hanamaki and another in the direction Iwaizumi had run to.

Issei shoved Oikawa behind a tree, a foreign fear squeezing his heart.

“Stay here,” he said. Oikawa looked very much like he wanted to protest, but Issei turned away before he could.

The rock monster was obviously magic, but it didn’t seem to be targeted towards his kind. Issei knew he could do something about it – the rock monster must be getting its magic from somewhere, right?

The sun beat down on his back as Issei crouched and made his way around the perimeter of the stone circle, looking for an opening, a weakness. It had been a long, long time since he tried calling on what meagre sun powers he had.

The rock monster fired again, Hanamaki’s cat yowling in tandem with the shields bursting into fragments of spent magic. It was followed by Hanamaki cursing, shaking his hands as if he’d burned them. Issei dearly hoped that wasn’t the case. Iwaizumi had ducked behind a tree.

The rock monster was powering up again, its hand carvings glowing. From where Issei stood, he noticed that the door-like rock also glowed, its carvings coming to life. Was that its source?

Hanamaki’s shields flickered back into place, but Issei couldn’t imagine the energy it took to keep up four shields from pure magic. He had to figure out how to shut the rock monster down.

Issei eyed the rock door, hands flexing. He might not have the title nor glory of a sun god anymore, but he was still a god with strength enough to break down a couple of rocks. Would the door be more protected than the monster that guarded it?

Across the field, the monster was just about finished powering up for another pair of fireballs. But this time, both its arms were aimed at Iwaizumi.

Issei broke out on a run, Hanamaki’s magic shield attempting to keep up with him and catching its caster’s attention. Then three things happened at once.

Hanamaki shouted, words registering too late for Issei to react to them.

Issei had raised his arms and brought his fists down on the rock door, considerable strength cracking the stone and breaking up the carvings. The door stayed upright despite the damage.

At the very same time, the rock monster fired, seconds before it broke apart in stone and magma sludge, cooling quickly.

Issei didn’t have time to feel triumph at its defeat. He had turned just in time to see Hanamaki’s shield burst into shards, the fire engulfing Iwaizumi completely.

\---

\---

Hajime was burning.

A part of him was insisting that fire didn’t move like that. That it wasn’t supposed to wash over him and envelope him like a blanket, and that it wasn’t supposed to feel  _ comforting. _

But there he was, mortal flesh burning away into a fiery light. Beneath it, exposed as if it had been there the whole time, was all the memories and power Hajime had forgotten was a part of him.

Hajime straightened, shoulders relaxed with a confidence he so dearly missed. Fire licked at the ends of his hair, his clothes, the shadow of talons on his hands, even his breath. He couldn’t help but puff his feathers out proudly,

Not that he hadn’t been confident in himself before, but he couldn’t believe he’d been so… smothered. He felt like life had been breathed into him again.

He stepped out in a trail of fire, careful not to burn the forest behind him. The ring of protection he’d erected was supposed to keep it all contained, but he supposed it had weakened over time. Hajime surveyed the scene, wincing a little at the pile of rubble and quickly cooling lava that had once been his faithful guardian. It had taken a considerable amount of his magic to make that.

His eyes flitted over to Hanamaki, staring dumbstruck at him. That’s right, he was a witch, wasn’t he? Surely he’d heard about what Hajime was? They all had quite a bit of explaining to do.

His attention went back to the defeated guardian, and the broken seal beyond it, minutes from truly breaking down and releasing his enemy. Matsukawa was standing there with his hands still fisted. He had a look of disbelief on his face, too.

Where was Oikawa?

Hajime breathed deeply, searching for his scent. He was beyond the ring of protection, still crouched behind a tree. Now that he had the ability, he could smell something peculiar about Oikawa. A scent older than it should’ve been.

In any case, he gestured for all three of them to come closer, to join him as he made his way further into the circle.

Because if the seal was broken, it wouldn’t be long before that thing came out. Hajime wanted to keep them close. He couldn’t defeat it last time, but a hundred years under his seal should’ve done it damage.

Matsukawa was the first to get to him, surprising him with a fierce embrace. He’d never been a very tactile person, but now he was holding Hajime as if he was scared he’d disappear.

Or, Hajime realized, burst into flames.

“Sorry, did I worry you?” he asked, contrite.

Matsukawa pulled away enough to give him a flat look.

“A little heads up would’ve been nice,” he said. He looked Hajime up and down. “So you’re… not human.”

Hajime nodded.

“I forgot,” he said, rather truthfully. “I think the right term is Phoenix.”

“You’re a  _ what _ !”

That was Oikawa shouting, coming over with Hanamaki right behind him. The latter had his brows raised, but he looked more amused than anything. Then again, that seemed to be Hanamaki’s default.

“I never would’ve guessed,” Hanamaki said.

“Is anyone here actually human?” Oikawa asked, balking as if he couldn’t believe his own question.

“It’s rude to ask people what they are, your Highness,” Hanamaki teased. “At least not without giving yours first.”

Oikawa spluttered, fidgeting. He waved his hand about with a nervous laugh. He tried valiantly for nonchalance, but Hajime had to admit he was failing hard. 

“Yeah, okay so! I’m immortal, so what! Welcome to the ‘can’t die’ club!” Oikawa said.

“I dunno about that,” Hanamaki said pointedly, just to egg Oikawa on.

“You’ve got plenty of magic to keep you going for a long time,” Matsukawa assured him, nudging him with his shoulder. Hanamaki blinked at him in surprise.

Hajime huffed, amused and curious in equal parts. Matsukawa had admitted to being a god, how hard would it have been for him to see the thick waves of magic clinging to Hanamaki?

Had they been keeping all of this from each other the entire time?

The air around them shuddered, reminding Hajime of why they were there. Nearby, the stone door broke apart and collapsed in a heap. Hanamaki made a sound, accompanied by a wave of magic and completely catching Hajime’s attention.

“Whatever you kept in here, it’s trying to get out,” Hanamaki said. “I supported your ring of protection just in case. I have a shield over us too. But as soon as it realizes it can’t get out, we’ll be in danger.”

“Right,” Hajime said with a sigh. “That thing is a spirit of chaos, a malicious demon. I trapped it with all I had to weaken it. At least until the seal broke.”

Matsukawa ducked his head, muttering an apology.

“How do we defeat it?” Oikawa asked, getting right to the point. “I’m assuming we can’t let something like that run around freely?”

“It’ll be harder to burn it up when it doesn’t have a physical form like that,” Hajime admitted. “I was planning to let it possess my guardian so I can burn up its core from the inside out, but…”

Matsukawa reddened, muttering another apology and earning a snicker from Hanamaki.

Oikawa hummed.

“You just need to burn it up from the inside?” he asked. “You were going to leave the guardian vessel intact?”

“That was the plan,” Hajime said.

“So you  _ can _ do it?” Oikawa pressed on. Hajime was starting to get suspicious.

“Yeah,” he answered, frowning.

Oikawa nodded. “Okay, I’ll do it.”

This, of course, earned a rather unified “No!” from everyone else.

“Oikawa, what the fuck?” Hajime asked, scandalized.

“You can’t possibly be serious,” Matsukawa said, brows pulled down with a disapproving frown.

“I don’t think now is the best time to test your immortality, your Highness,” Hanamaki added.

Oikawa rolled his eyes at them, the asshole.

“How do you think I survived the golden age of monarchy assassinations?” he asked, quite possibly rhetorically. He shook his head, no doubt at the questioning glares he was getting. Hajime certainly had  _ many _ questions at the moment.

“I can’t die, I’ve told you that,” Oikawa continued. “Plus, Iwa-chan said he can keep my body safe.”

“That was  _ not _ what I said!” Hajime protested hotly. “Don’t be an idiot!”

“We can think of something else, princess. You don’t have to hurt yourself.” Hanamaki said, visibly worried.

“Aw, I didn’t know you all cared,” Oikawa said, words not as light as he might’ve hoped.

“We all care about you, dumbass,” Hajime scoffed.

Matsukawa made a sound, nodding in agreement.

“Careful there, I might start thinking you all have a crush on me,” Oikawa teased, despite looking flustered himself.

Hajime blushed furiously, a couple of his feathers bursting into flames. Ah, he forgot just how much more transparent he was in this form.

A quick glance at Matsukawa and Hanamaki proved they weren’t faring any better, pink and flustered. But it didn’t take long for them to recover.

“Since we’re apparently being honest now,” Matsukawa said, trailing off suggestively. Hanamaki, always one to pick up on his cues faster than the rest of them, grinned.

“That’s right, actually,” Hanamaki nodded sagely, hand plucking some of his magic from the air and turning it into a flower. He bypassed handing it to Oikawa, directly placing it in his hair instead.

Hajime sighed. So they  _ were _ doing this now.

“So what if we did?” he asked challengingly, arms crossed.

Oikawa blinked, glancing between the three of them with an increasingly reddening face as realization dawned on him. The flush went all the way to the tips of his ears and down his neck. It was the reddest Hajime had ever seen him, making the impromptu group confession almost worth it.

“You!” he said, blinking hard. He almost looked like he could start crying. “You guys just can’t spring this on me! Not right now!”

“That’s why we’re saying you shouldn’t go around getting yourself killed,” Hanamaki said immediately, pointing in turn at Matsukawa and Hajime. “That goes for both of you, too.”

“Can we talk about this later!” Oikawa said, voice pitching.

The air shuddered again, this time considerably closer to them. Like it was trying to break through Hanamaki’s shield. Hajime exchanged a tense glance with Hanamaki.

“Sure,” Hajime agreed easily.

“What? Is it the thing?” Oikawa looked between them. “You  _ have  _ to let me do it. Mattsun and Makki can’t do it, this spirit thing would just use their powers against us. I’m the best choice.”

Hajime knew that, objectively, Oikawa was right. The spirit’s core would be hidden away until it could occupy a vessel, and nothing would stop it if it got a witch or a literal god. That didn’t mean he wanted to put Oikawa in danger like that.

Hanamaki, on the other hand, had a hard look growing on his face.

“You can’t be considering this,” Hajime said, exasperated.

“If Sunshine and I can hold him down, it’ll be easier for you to burn it out of him, right?” Hanamaki asked. Matsukawa looked dubious at that, but didn’t protest.

Hajime was outvoted. He looked at Oikawa, at the flower still nestled in his hair. He had his chin up, staring at Hajime with fierce determination. Hajime softened his frown consciously.

“I don’t want to hurt you,” he admitted.

Oikawa smiled, no doubt pleased and flattered. But he cupped Hajime’s cheek lightly.

“I trust you,” he said softly, making Hajime’s heart flare.

“Sappy,” Hanamaki interjected, leaning on Matsukawa. “I want some, too.”

Oikawa rolled his eyes, but he pulled Hanamaki forward by the shirt and gave him a kiss on the cheek. He did the same to a dumbfounded Matsukawa.

“There,” he said. “Can we please get on with the burning up of evil spirits?”

Hajime laughed despite himself.

“All right.” He flexed his arms, feeling the fire running through his soul. Had he really given this up for a seal for so long?

Oikawa stepped carefully away from them and out of the shield’s range, eyes flicking around and betraying his nerves. It didn’t last very long.

Hajime could see it, the moment that the faint static grey outline of the chaos spirit descended into Oikawa’s form. Oikawa’s body stiffened, expression becoming rigid and blank. His eyes had glazed over.

“Let’s make this quick,” Hanamaki muttered, magic flaring.

The spirit focused on them with Oikawa’s eyes, overcome with fury once it recognized Hajime.

“I’ll kill you!” it screeched, voice made of static and a thousand shattered glass.

It lunged at them.

\---

Oikawa retched, grey black bile splattering onto the grass. Hajime patted him comfortingly on the back, while Hanamaki searched their forgotten packs for a water bottle.

“Worse than being beheaded, I swear,” Oikawa complained, wiping his mouth. He frowned at his hand, which came away stained black.

“We’re never doing that again,” Hanamaki agreed, handing him the bottle and a towel. Oikawa took the towel first, wiping himself off.

Hajime couldn’t help but fret just a bit more, even though his fire was supposed to have cleansed the spirit from Oikawa’s system, vomit notwithstanding.

“I found Puffers!” Matsukawa announced, approaching them with a bundle of fur in his arms. Puffers had bits of leaves and dirt stuck to her once-white fur. She meowed balefully at them, as if it was their fault she ended up hiding and getting dirty.

To be fair, she had been the one to stowaway with them.

“Oh, you poor baby.” Hanamaki took Puffers from Matsukawa, cooing at her and brushing the leaves and dirt from her fur. She meowed again.

“You all right?” Matsukawa asked, looking Oikawa over. Despite everything, the flower Hanamaki had stuck in his hair had stayed where it was. The witch’s magic most likely kept it there.

“Mattsun,” Oikawa whined, taking small sips from his water bottle in between his words. “It feels like a really weird hangover. It feels like there was a sauna inside my body.”

Matsukawa obligingly coddled him, leading him to sit on one of the stones that made up Hajime’s ring of protection.

“It should wear off by tomorrow,” Hajime reassured him, feeling a spike of guilt.

“Just like a real hangover,” Matsukawa said with a slight smirk. Oikawa whined wordlessly, leaning against him.

“Are we camping out here for the night?” Hanamaki asked, once he’d finished placating Puffers.

“It’d be for the best,” Hajime answered, gesturing to the stones. “Ring of protection and all.”

Oikawa suddenly sat up, straightening from where he had been leaning on Matsukawa.

“Oh my god,” he exclaimed.

“You called?” Matsukawa said, eyes warm with mirth. Hanamaki laughed, and laughed harder when Oikawa smacked Matsukawa on the shoulder.

“Not funny,” Oikawa said. He rounded in on Hajime. “Was it your stupid ring that got us lost in the first place?”

Hajime winced, shoulders drooping.

“Maybe,” he mumbled.

Matsukawa’s brows rose in question. “It was calling to you?”

“Huh,” Hanamaki said, petting Puffers thoughtfully. “Oh, that fits the prophetic warnings, doesn’t it?”

“What prophetic warnings?” Hajime and Oikawa asked at the same time. Puffers meowed, looking incredibly pleased about something. Maybe the fact that her master was possibly in trouble.

_ Definitely  _ in trouble, if Hajime had any say in it. They could have had warnings!

“In my defence, it was super vague,” Hanamaki said. “And I still don’t get most of it. We can talk while setting up camp?”

“Sounds good to me,” Matsukawa stood up, stretching. “Better finish it up before sundown, anyway.”

“Can you magic us up some tents?” Oikawa asked, ‘hangover’ apparently forgotten as he stood up as well.

“I can transfigure some leaves, sure,” Hanamaki answered with a laugh, hefting a pack and heading for the centre of the stone ring. Hajime grabbed the rest of the packs – after obligatory protests from Oikawa – and followed them.

“Oh! Speaking of Harry Potter…”

They set up camp in between the destroyed rock guardian and the broken down door, preparing a meal of sandwiches amongst the four of them just as the sun began to set. They talked all the while, mostly about their plans for the rest of the trip, and how dumb it was that they kept their identities secret from each other.

Matsukawa was leaning against Hajime, nearly falling asleep with his sandwich still in his mouth. He had mumbled something about being tethered to the sun, before delving into a tired rant about retirement and unclear contract terms.

Eventually, Hajime had taken the half eaten sandwich away from him and let him lie down in his lap. This made Oikawa protest, until Hanamaki offered his own lap ‘as compensation.’

“It’s not compensation, Makki!” Oikawa said, immediately making himself comfortable on top of Hanamaki. “Your lap is way better than Iwa-chan’s lap anyway!”

Hajime raised a brow at him. 

“How would you know?”

“I just know,” Oikawa declared, sticking his tongue out at him.

“We would need proof,” Hanamaki said, a scheming little grin on his face. “We’d need to take turns lying down in each other’s laps.”

Hajime rolled his eyes at him, but couldn’t bring himself to verbally reject the idea. It sounded nice, and he wasn’t actually opposed to it.

“If we all confessed to each other,” came Matsukawa’s voice, sleepy and slow. He already had his eyes closed. “And nobody protested. Are we all boyfriends now?”

Hanamaki and Oikawa made a sound like a strangled cat, answered by an offended meow from Puffers from where she was curled up on top of their bags. Hajime snickered, despite feeling some of his feathers burst into flames again.

On a whim, he ran his fingers through Matsukawa’s curls, earning a grateful hum and Matsukawa cuddling against him more. Hajime let himself smile.

“I’d say so.”

THE END

**Author's Note:**

> You can also bug me on [twitter](https://twitter.com/Tenticorn) if you'd like, though I mostly draw there ^u^
> 
> Thoughts? :D


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